Natick Touts 'Ironman' Milestone

26 Feb 2013

Military.com just posted an item in the Army news section that highlights the results of Natick's forward operational assessment of the Large Capacity Ammunition Carriage System, also known as "Ironman."

The article states that Ironman began during a discussion between members of the 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division, about how three-man, crew-served weapons teams struggled to stay together during engagements with the enemy while negotiating difficult terrain. Wouldn't it be nice, someone said, if they had a one-man weapon system like the one actor Jesse Venture had brandished in the movie "Predator"?
The Guardsmen built their own prototype using discarded ammo cans welded together and strapped to an old ALICE frame. They handed over the prototype to Natick's Quick Reaction Cell.

To date, approximately 100 of the Ironman prototypes have been sent to Afghanistan for use with the M240B machine gun.

The system has been around for awhile; in fact, DT's sister site Kit Up! covered some of the early controversy around it a couple of years ago. (That post can be seen here.)

Just goes to show that everything's relative in the world of military acquisitions, including the meaning of the word "rapid."